Texans Prepare Talent Search

There's really nothing new in this article ... I'm just surprised that the Chronicle actually had a story on the Texans.

What I'm not surprised by - considering limited cap space - is Casserly's statement that "we're not going to be a big player in free agency."

Every draft class is important but this one is very important considering age/health/salary status of guys like Coleman, Glenn, Walker, Sharper, McKinney, Wiegert and Payne (assuming Seth returns), the lack of depth on the DL if we lose both DeLoach and Sears, and the fact that the Texans are not picking in the top ten for the first time ever. Of course, with CC there is no way to predict what will happen on draft day.

Texans Prepare Talent Search

I to was surprised, and thankful, to find this Texans' article in the Sunday
Chron.
But on the story, while I commend Cass & the team for the majority of their draft choices (the only bonifide bust to this point is Hollings, and in all fairness it may still be premature to write the obit on that pick), his FA
choices and/or compensation being paid for those choices is on the verge of
putting us in a world of cap hurt. I still scratch my head for what they are paying Walker - its almost like Walker had something on Cass. They knew the
guy well, afterall he'd been here both seasons before they handed him a huge chunk of $. And everyone knows (whether they will admit it or not), they gave Todd Wade Left Tackle money when he's just a slighly above average (on his best days), Right Tackle.
As the article suggests, they are gonna have to hope that the Wands & Babins really learned well in their first season as starters, 'cause there isn't much dough left for FA and you can only get so much help in a single draft.

basicly a downer, everything assumed realized, with a couple caveat's-

"The most overrated thing that drives me crazy is that performance at the combine drastically changes a rating," Casserly said. "If we've scouted a guy, it's not going to change that much. What we're doing at the combine is sifting it out.

"The big thing you can get is the physical (exam) because that's totally unknown. The combine is an important part of the process, but it's not the be-all and the end-all."



with that said they must already have the players targeted rated appropriately on their draft board. Also the Texans by making this statement-

"We're not going to be a big player in free agency, so most of it is the draft. I would say my part is 90 (percent) to 10 (percent) on the draft."



is a set-up to lower expectations, meaning I'd bank on a surprise free agent signing, the Texans cannot be built alone via the draft.

The article indicates that they'll pursue 2 FA's this year. I'm betting on Bubba Franks & an offensive lineman.

I think most of their FA signings will depnd on who they bring back... I think the biggest questionmarks are WR Bradford, FS McCree, OT Spears, CB Wright, Backup MLB dude, DT Payne, DE Sears;
call them the magnificant seven- they will huge impact on the Texans offseason

Hottoddie said:

The article indicates that they'll pursue 2 FA's this year. I'm betting on Bubba Franks & an offensive lineman.

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With Favre coming back for another season, you can count on Franks being franchised.

1) He's a favorite red zone target of Favre's
2) The franchise tag for TE is "only" $2.687 million
3) The Packers backup TE is also a free agent

Speaking of FA O-linemen, the Pack's guard Mike Wahle is likely to be released prior to the FA period as he's due a $6 million roster bonus & a $5 million salary in '05.

Lucky said:

With Favre coming back for another season, you can count on Franks being franchised.

1) He's a favorite red zone target of Favre's
2) The franchise tag for TE is "only" $2.687 million
3) The Packers backup TE is also a free agent

Speaking of FA O-linemen, the Pack's guard Mike Wahle is likely to be released prior to the FA period as he's due a $6 million roster bonus & a $5 million salary in '05.

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Are you referring to David Martin or Ben Steele? Steele is a little light in the britches at 233 lbs. Martin at 6'4" 262 lbs would seem like a better fit. Do you know if either one can block?

Wahle is their LG. Can he play the RG position?

By the way, their RG, Marco Rivera, is also an UFA. He's a little long in the tooth, but has only missed one start since the "98" season.

Also, we might want to keep an eye on their DT Cullen Jenkins. He's an UFA & had a pretty good 1st year. At 6'3" 292lbs, he might be a prime candidate to replace Walker, or at least adding some quality depth.

1) I was thinking of David Martin. Martin has good size, but is considered more of a receiving TE. Martin was actually a college WR at Tennessee. Never heard of Ben Steele, but he has a great name for a football player.

2) Wahle has played LG the past 4 years, but has played all along the line previously. Even LT. But, I don't think Pitts is so entrenched at LG that a move to RG would hinder him.

3) I think Rivera is too old to pursue in free agency.

4) Cullen Jenkins is actually an Exclusive Rights Free Agent (EFA), because he's been in the league only 2 seasons. As long as the Packers extend an offer equal to or above the minimum for a player entering his 3rd season, Jenkins rights remain with Green Bay.

Lucky said:

4) Cullen Jenkins is actually an Exclusive Rights Free Agent (EFA), because he's been in the league only 2 seasons. As long as the Packers extend an offer equal to or above the minimum for a player entering his 3rd season, Jenkins rights remain with Green Bay.

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I'm afraid you might be mistaken on this one. He was signed as an undrafted FA in 2004. Unless the ERFA tag applies to undrafted rookies, then he should be an UFA.

http://www.packers.com/news/releases/2004/01/19/1/

Packers Sign 13 Players To Free Agent Contracts

posted 01/19/2004

The Green Bay Packers have signed 13 players to free-agent contracts, GM/Head Coach Mike Sherman announced Monday.

The additions include six who have been members of the team's practice squad over the past two seasons, among them tackle Jason Jimenez of Southern Mississippi, 6-7 and 310 pounds; tight end Tony Donald of Western, Colo., State, 6-3 and 245; cornerback Calvin Carlyle of Oregon State, 5-11 and 184; wide receivers Wilson Thomas of Nebraska, 6-5 and 207, and Corey Parchman of Ball State, 6-0 and 185; and defensive end Eric Powell of Florida State, 6-3 and 268 pounds.

The other signees include defensive ends John Hilliard, a fourth-year professional out of Mississippi State and a former Seattle Seahawk, 6-3 and 287, and Cullen Jenkins of Central Michigan University, 6-3 and 292; fullback Kris Briggs of Southern Methodist, 5-11 and 234; guard James Broyles of Southwest Missouri, 6-4 and 303; cornerback Jason Horton of North Carolina A&T, 6-0 and 183; linebacker Ralph Turner of Purdue, 6-1 and 213; and running back Walter Williams of Grambling State, 6-0 and 206.

Unless the ERFA tag applies to undrafted rookies

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It does for any player with two years or less of accrued service whose contract expires.

A player needs a minimum of 4 years service to qualitfy for UFA and at least 3 but less than 4 to qualify for RFA. It appears that Jenkins has only accrued one year of service.

Two years service or less and it's called exclusive rights free agency, meaning the player can only sign with his prior team provided the team makes a minimum qualifying offer to the player by such and such date.

aj. said:

It does if the player has two years or less of accrued service.

A player needs a minimum of 4 years service to qualitfy for UFA and at least 3 but less than 4 to qualify for RFA. It appears that Jenkins has only accrued one year of service.

Two years service or less and it's called exclusive rights free agency, meaning the player can only sign with his prior team provided the team makes a minimum qualifying offer to the player by such and such date.

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Well, that sucks then. I guess it's a moot point to ask when the offer has to be made by. There's no way that he won't be made an offer.

On another note, here's a summary bio of David Martin. If Franks is Franchised, Martin looks like he could be a nice concession prize for our TE needs.

DAVID MARTIN

Athletic tight end, the former
college wide receiver looks
to capitalize on 2004 opportunity
to lock down role as
club’s primary backup at the
position…A three-year veteran,
has served as both the
second and third tight end in
his young career…
Possesses tools ready-made for the Packers’ ‘West
Coast’ offense…“He’s a very athletic for the position,”
observes new Packers tight ends coach
Joe Philbin. “He runs extremely well. He’s
got good quickness, good explosiveness.
All teams are looking for the tight end that
can threaten deep and stretch the field — he has that
type of ability.”…Utilizing that ability, has flashed
moments of great promise at the position, now just
needs to display consistent effort and subsequent
results…“We’re looking for him to come into his own
this year,” continues Philbin. “He should be a more productive
player in 2004. He’s got the ability, the intelligence.
I think he has the desire. It’s just a matter of getting
out there and performing, being the guy and getting
it done. I really feel like that he’s going to be a very good
blocker, both on the line and off the line. I’m excited
about his potential; consistency and making plays on
Sunday is what needs to happen. I think he can be a
complete tight end, be a guy that can do all the things
that you want to do with the position.”…A substantial
preseason surprise as a rookie, proceeded to fashion
one of the most intriguing success "stories" of the
Packers' 2001 season, establishing himself as the backup
tight end with an impressive training camp performance
and the attendant promise of even better things to
come with his creditable contributions during the regular
season…Named as the Packers' 'Offensive Rookie of
the Year' in recognition of his 2001 performance…A
wide receiver during his college career at Tennessee, he
bulked up by 25 pounds in the transition to NFL tight end
and provided the Green and Gold with a significant threat
down the middle of the field as well as a willing and
aggressive blocker.

It continues to look like minimal FA signings. Status quo will not work for the Texans. If we don't make some moves, you can kiss next year off. I've been saying that for sometime and taking a lot of heat. Our only hope is that a couple of the injured players return to form. A couple of unkowns like BJ and Hollings could appear on the radar screen and make a difference. The real problem appears to be the O-line. No QB, not even Payton Manning can play and be affective with the O-line we have. I don't know how we could get better by September. May be someone will show up in the draft, but I wouldn't hold my breath. Its a shame that Carr may never be able to show what he can really do. The same applies to AJ. For as good as AJ is, if the QB never has the time to wait for him to get open, he will never be able to show us his true talent. What a waste for the Fans and the Players. Again, I will say the plans they had went down the drain with the injuries the last two years and it may well be in the 8th or 9th year before we see a play off contender.

You are really negative. I may not agree with all the picks, but I still support the team. I will just enjoy the growing phase and believe that the team can succeed. I will also hope that the injuries will heal.

The Texans philosophy from the start was to draft and groom their own guys. When you pursue FA's all the time you end up in cap hell. Most people know that you bid against other teams for FA's so basically you over pay for most of the players groomed and trained by other teams.

Being a big player in FA = Redskins.

Pursuing a few big players on occassion but staying away from high priced guys for the most part = Patriots.

Vinny and Rit I'm not going to disagree with either of you, but what I'm trying to say is it appears to me they have made a mess of the FA market. It would appear that are pick of the original litter was not that great and we are now saddled with big time problems. From some of the reports it appears we have some real Cap problems and that's making us inflexible. If we cut and run on some of these guys where do we stand? I know we would have a lot of problems next year, but how about the following year. I know a lot of people think that next year we will be over 500 and pushing for a play off spot, but I really don't think that is in the cards. My main focus is the O-line and protection for Carr so we can generate some offense. You might focus similarly on the D-line and say the same. We really have a number of key older injured players and the question is will they return to form or do we let them go? I really think management faces some very tough decisions. I point to the fact that Carr and AJ will be going into years 4 and 3 respectively. They too are aging. At the end of the season if you looked at the players and what happened I think you would be hard pressed to point to more than a handful of players who had a good season and finished strong. AJ did not finish strong, Carr did not finish strong, but Wong, DROB,JJ, and perhaps Babin did. JJ was very respectable and perhaps the most reliable until injury at the end. But we can say that for a lot of our players. Again, I will continue to say that injuries a year ago hurt us badly, continued to hurt us this year, and may impact us further next year and management doesn't seem to be able to deal with that problem. Again that's why I think we are still several years away from competeing. I think this ball club peaked at the end of the 2nd season. There aren't many players on this ball club who can't be replaced. Oh, well, I really hope we can somehow find away to improve this ball club before the season starts next year. It was fun watching us put fear in the heart of the leaders at the end of the second season. We stayed with some very good ball clubs and we did it with a lot of up starts who played together. Individually they weren't much, but collectively they were hell. Isn't that NE's philosophy?

We have room to make moves and to reshape parts of this team as needed Ibar. The gloom and doom you spread is really almost funny now. You have to be the most negative guy here. Try doing some research and make an effort to understand some of this stuff you complain about over and over. Click the link at the bottom for the full piece.

So, this lengthy article is going to spell out exactly how I would handle the upcoming offseason for the Texans, including both free agency and the college draft. Note that I don’t intend to predict the future here, but I am merely offering one humble opinion on how I would want reality to unfold for the Texans if I were running things at Reliant Park.

Oh, and I don’t postulate here in a vacuum… I’ll spell out the cap ramifications to my musings before we’re all done here so there’s no funny business.

Some reference material may be needed to keep up here, too. A couple weeks back, I pieced together an unofficial salary cap for the Texans. Contrary to popular belief, the Texans aren’t strapped for cap space, but they aren’t flush with it either. The Texans do have a large number of free agents (of all varieties), so that does give them (and me) ample flexibility to reshape the roster this offseason.

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http://www.houstonprofootball.com/scout/scout105.html

The article on the HoustonProFootball website is excellect on several counts
except for his discussion of the Draft which is, no pun intended, a sheer fantasy draft. Unless we do something real stupid and give up a bunch of picks to move and get Derrick Johnson, he ain't gonna be in sight @ 13. And
Hawthorne is probably even more unlikely to be available @ the 47th pick.

look at the 3 or 4 most successful teams in the league. None of them make regular high dollar FA signing. Philly signed Owens and kearse as lat peices to the puzzle to get them to the super bowl, but outside of that have made none recently worth noting.

New england has not made sexy FA signings and Pittsburgh is known for not signing its own players much less large dollar FA outside of thier organization.

the team who runs their organization most like how too many fans would like is the Redskins. Every year they make high dollar big name FA at "need' positions, make major changes to the coaching staff, and have a new starting QB. Look at the record and overall talent base.

some of you don't want to here stick with the guys you have (players and coaches) improving thorugh your players getting better and recognizing talent through the draft. that's what work and no matter how hard some of you try you won't be able to contradict that.

Ibar_Harry said:

I think this ball club peaked at the end of the 2nd season.

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They went 0-4 to end the season including 2 blowout losses. Let's seriously hope that wasn't their peak.

but what I'm trying to say is it appears to me they have made a mess of the FA market.

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Bald assertions like this look negative and frankly aren't even a basis for much of a discussion. Try telling us what specific players the Texans should have tried to sign, who they shouldn't have signed, how those differences would have affected the team. I'll spot you one--IMO the Texans made a mistake in 2003 by not picking up Grady Jackson off the waiver wire. He could have taken the place of Payne or Walker on the line in 2003 instead of one of the street free agents they had in the rotation and is a monster against the run.

ArlingtonTexan said:

Philly signed Owens and kearse as lat peices to the puzzle to get them to the super bowl, but outside of that have made none recently worth noting.

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Yea, but those are huge, huge pieces. After McNabb, TO is the most important player in their offense - before or after his acquisition. And Kearse,
wow, imagine what it would do for our D if we added a playmaker like him.
2 impact players of their magnitude can make a big difference on their whole team.

nunusguy said:

Yea, but those are huge, huge pieces. After McNabb, TO is the most important player in their offense - before or after his acquisition. And Kearse,
wow, imagine what it would do for our D if we added a playmaker like him.
2 impact players of their magnitude can make a big difference on their whole team.

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There is truth to what you say about us being better, but the eagles got to the NFC champioship game with through the draft and then made timely and specific signings to go to the final level. If we continue to spend large FA money just to get the base talent then when we are that one or two players away, the texans might not be able to make those last piece moves.

I think Brian Westbrook might be as big a piece (if not bigger) as T.O. for the Eagle's offense. Westbrook was injured during the 2003 playoffs and was sorely missed. He was one of the main reasons they made it to the Super Bowl this year.

well good now maybe people will quit dreaming about all the O-Line changing.

Thanks Vinny, I did read Weiland's article from top to bottom and I thought one of his key points was upgrading the O-line to protect Carr. I have been saying that all along and where I differ is that I don't think we will go after either of the players Weiland was talking about. I think they won't be there and that's the problem. I hope one of them is and it shores up our O-line. Again, my negativity is associated with the lack of protection or our prime time QB. The offense is simply not going anywhere without some changes somewhere. May be it will be in the coaching ranks, but something has to change for improvement to take place. I believe our team has played some of its best games when Wiegert was in the lineup. Zack has had some problems the last couple of years staying healthy. Who do we have to realistically replace his experience and leadership. I don't think we have anyone right now. Could we get someone, probably, but don't bet on it. I simply do not share Weiland's confidence in the return of some key injured personnel. Most notibly Walker and Payne. I would also add, while not mentioned, I have concerns about Glenn. Fine player, don't get me wrong, but the last two seasons he has been iffy due to injuries. I simply don't believe he will be able to maintain his health for a full season. Coleman is getting up there and the injury bug caught up with him this year. So did some off the field problems. Not much mention is made of McKinny and the center position. This is another weak link in the armour. I'm sorry, but the O-line is the key to this ball club. Improve it and we have a chance to be a good team. The O-line controls the destiny of our defense. If we can give our aging defense more resting time, then we will be able to compete with anyone. Right now that's not happening and that's why I believe we are getting beat. We have a lot of offensive talent that is simply under achieving. We should be able to put a lot of offensive pressure on almost any team in the league and we are not doing so because of the O-line. Once again, I will say fix the O-line and you will see big changes in this ball club's performance.

And everyone knows (whether they will admit it or not), they gave Todd Wade Left Tackle money when he's just a slighly above average (on his best days), Right Tackle.

As a relative novice when it comes to knowing about linemen, why would a Left Tackle be considered more valuable than a Right Tackle?

Left Tackles protect the blind side of a QB and most teams put their best rusher on that side.

Wade will be fine. We only had journeymen before him. I don't mind us spending money on a guy like this. If we just plug in another journeyman then the fans complain that we don't pursue needs. Certain fans complain either way no matter what we do.

Todd Wade was a 2nd round pick out of OL'Miss . He was pretty highly regaurded . He was paid because of his age and ability . At the end of his contract he'll probably be a good deal . The problem is he's only 6 .08 and 330 .

Well one name people can take off their wishlist is Walter Jones, the Seahawks signed him to a 7 year deal today.